GIFT  OF 


. 


GIFT 
NOV    7     WI8' 


War,  Peace  and 
Reconstruction 


BY  JOHN  S.  CHAMBERS 
STATE  CONTROLLER 


Sacramento,  California 
September,  1918 


Waiy .  -Peace  iand  Reconstruction 

By  JOHN  S.  CHAMBERS,  State  Controller 


The  Legislature  of  California,  which  will  assemble  in  Sac- 
mento  on  the  first  Monday  in  January,  1919— the  Forty-third 
Session — will  face  as  vital  problems,  if  not  more  vital,  than 
ever  a  preceding  body  of  the  kind,  in  this  State,  was  called 
upon  to  consider. 

The  first  Legislature,  which  met  at  Pueblo  de  San  Jose 
in  December,  1849,  and  the  Legislatures  that  followed  during 
the  next  few  years,  sitting  at  San  Jose,  Vallejo,  Benicia  and 
Sacramento,  had  grave  questions  to  solve  looking  to  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  State  Government  on  a  wise  and  permanent 
basis.  The  Legislatures  which  met  during  the  administrations 
of  Governors  Leland  Stanford  and  Frederick  F.  Low  were  con- 
cerned with  the  issues*  of  the  Civil  War  and  the  period  imme- 
diately succeeding  the  close  of  that  great  conflict.  And  in  recent 
years,  the  Legislatures  of  the  Johnson  incumbency  were  called 
upon  to  inaugurate,  in  many  ways,  a  new  order  of  things,  and 
particularly  to  pass  laws  along  enlarged  humanitarian  lines. 

But  none  of  these  administrations  or  Legislatures  had 
matters  before  it  of  graver  import  to  the  people  of  California, 
and,  indeed  of  the  nation,  than  will  confront  tfie  Governor  and 
lawmakers  before  whom  will  come,  in  1919,  problems  developed 
by  the  world  war  and  by  the  peace  that  will  follow,  whether 
immediate  or  prospective.  We  must  begin  now  to  give  earnest 
thought  not  only  to  the  present,  but  to  the  future. 

THE  TREND  TO  THE  PEOPLE. 

California  and  the  other  States  of  the  Union,  as  well  as 
the  Nation  itself,  are  on  the  eve  of  great  political,  economic  and 
social  changes.  The  President  some  months  ago,  in  a  letter 
addressed  to  the  leaders  of  his  party  in  New  Jersey,  warned 
them  that  they  would  have  to  get  away  from  "old  slogans  and 
traditions,"  and  prepare  to  meet  "vital  issues"  if  they  would 
achieve  victory;  that  the  American  soldier  who  has  faced  death 
in  Europe  for  his  country  would  not  be  satisfied,  on  his  return, 
with  "empty  phrases,"  but  would  demand  "sincere  thinking" 
and  "genuine  action."  And  not  only  the  President,  but  many 
others  high  up  in  the  councils  of  the  Nation,  without  reference 
to  party,  have  read  the  signs  of  the  times,  have  visualized  the 
future  and  admonished  their  countrymen  of  the  new  order  of 
things  even  now  under  way. 


Paralleling  a  world  made  safe  for  democracy,  will  be  the 
strengthening  of  democratic  government  within  each  nation. 
And  this  will  mean  the  enlargement  of  "government  of  the 
people,  by  the  people,  for  the  people";  greater  power,  more 
privileges,  and  better  opportunities  for  the  masses.  And  I 
doubt  if  there  is  a  State  in  the  Union  as  well  prepared  to 
adjust  itself  to  the  new  conditions  as  they  develop  as  is  Cali- 
fornia. This  is  due  to  the  advanced  humanitarian  legislation 
already  on  our  statute  books.  Upon  such  lines,  if  the  signs  of 
the  times  be  read  aright,  though  more  far  reaching,  more  "rad- 
ical," will  the  more  important  of  our  future  laws  be  based,  not 
only  here  but  in  the  other  States  and  in  the  Nation  at  large. 
The  "radicalism"  can  best  be  tempered  by  recognizing  the  sig- 
nificance of  world  events,  the  part  our  country  is  playing  in 
them,  the  effect  upon  our  soldiers  abroad  and  our  people  here 
at  home  and  a  determination  not  to  oppose,  but  to  propose,  to 
recognize  that  we  are  facing  a  condition,  not  a  theory,  and, 
within  reasonable  limits,  to  cheerfully  accept  it  and  assist  it. 

How  far  the  States  go  will  depend,  in  large  part,  upon 
how  far  the  Federal  Government  goes.  As  now  constituted,  the 
Administration  at  Washington  undoubtedly  would  go  very  far. 
And  while  Federal  laws  have  limited,  or  no,  scope  within  a 
State,  they  are  supreme  as  between  States,  and  the  influence  of 
example  would  be  very  strong  under  such  circumstances. 


CALIFORNIA'S  HUMANITARIAN  RECORD. 

How  do  we  stand  in  California  today?  What  has  been 
the  legislation  intended  for  the  better  welfare  of  and  greater 
rule  by  the  people,  especially  in  recent  years?  Among  other 
things,  we  have  the  initiative,  the  referendum  and  the  recall, 
the  elimination  of  the  judiciary  from  partisan  politics,  a  direct 
primary  law  in  place  of  the  old  convention  system,  suffrage  for 
women,  the  direct  election  of  United  States  Senators,  strong 
laws  for  the  protection  of  women  and  children,  and  for  the 
safeguarding  and  advancement  of  labor,  as  indicated  by  the 
Industrial  Accident  Commission,  the  Commission  of  Immigration 
and  Housing,  the  Industrial  Welfare  Commission,  and  so  on. 
We  have,  too,  the  State  Water  Commission,  the  alien  land  act, 
the  Land  Settlement  Act,  as  at  the  Durham  Colony;  the  so- 
called  blue-sky  law,  affecting  corporations;  the  State  Commis- 
sion Market,  the  weights-and-measures  act,  the  Rural  Credits 
Commission  and  the  Social  Insurance  Commission,  both  to 
investigate  and  report,  and  many  others,  all  pointing  the  same 
way,  some  more  effective  than  others,  some  more  meritorious, 
some  misunderstood,  some  generally  favored  and  some  opposed. 


382790 


In  any  event,  a  distinct  start  has  been  made  in  California: 
the  foundation  has  been  laid  upon  which  to  build  in  accordance 
with  changes  the  world  war  is  bringing  to  pass,  as  interpreted 
by  many  of  the  nation's  political  and  industrial  leaders.  Charles 
M.  Schwab,  the  great  ironmaster,  for  instance,  declares  that 
after  the  war  there  will  be  no  aristocracy  of  wealth,  but  a  new 
order  of  things,  the  brotherhood  of  man. 

FURTHER  STEPS  ADVOCATED. 

The  conscription  of  idle  acres  is  being  preached  with 
renewed  vigor;  the  State  Government  is  urged  more  strongly 
than  ever  to  assist  producers  and  consumers  in  really  getting 
together  that  prices  may  be  reduced;  the  public  ownership  of 
all  public  utilities  is  demanded  more  forcibly  than  ever;  the 
farmer  and  the  laborer,  through  various  organizations  more  or 
less  representative  of  one  or  the  other,  are  insisting  upon  rep- 
resentation, as  such,  in  various  departments  of  the  State  Gov- 
ernment; the  "federation  of  all  irrigation  systems  under  State 
auspices"  has  advocates;  and  so  forth  and  so  on,  from  partly 
conservative  to  liberal,  and  from  liberal  to  strongly  socialistic. 

We  are  face  to  face  with  adjustments  of  the  gravest 
import.  "Sincere  thinking"  and  "genuine  action"  certainly  are 
required,  as  the  President  has  said;  but  that  is  not  all.  Intelli- 
gence, honesty  of  purpose,  courage  and  patriotism  also  are 
essential.  We  are  demanding  enduring  world  peace  and  admit 
such  a  peace  can  only  come  if  based  upon  justice.  And  so, 
too,  we  must  proceed  within  the  Nation  and  within  the  States, 
if  we  are  to  have  social,  economic  and  political  peace  at  home. 

PROBLEMS  OF  WAR  AND  PEACE. 

The  greatest  thing  before  the  country  today  is  the  win- 
ning of  the  war.  To  that  end  each  State,  as  well  as  each  citi- 
zen, should  contribute  to  the  limit.  No  other  issue  can  compare 
with  this. 

And  next  to  it  in  importance  is  to  meet,  here  at  home,  as 
they  should  be  met,  the  problems  the  war  has  developed  and 
which  peace  will  accentuate.  Particularly  pressing  now,  and 
one  that  will  become  more  so,  is  the  problem  of  the  medical 
care  and  re-education  along  vocational  lines  of  disabled  sol- 
diers— men  who  cannot  be  made  fit  to  fight  again.  And  then 
will  come,  with  the  end  of  the  war,  the  great  question  of  the 
reabsorption  into  civil  life  of  the  millions  of  returned  soldiers, 
munition  workers  and  others  who  were  engaged  in  war  indus- 
tries. 

Let  us  briefly  review,  as  to  the  first  of  these  problems, 
what  is  being  done  in  Europe,  and  then  as  to  what  is  being 
done  and  planned  in  the  United  States. 


EUROPE  AND  THE  DISABLED— GERMANY. 

In  Germany,  as  in  all  the  nations  engaged  in  the  war,  the 
medical  care  of  the  disabled  is  distinctly  a  governmental  func- 
tion. Until  the  man  is  made  as  physically  fit  as  possible  and 
is  in  a  condition  to  be  discharged,  he  remains  in  the  army  or 
the  navy,  under  military  rule.  If  minus  a  leg  or  an  arm,  or  both, 
he  is  fully  equipped  with  artificial  limbs  by  the  government 
free  of  cost,  and  these  appendages  are  kept  in  repair  without 
expense  to  him,  and,  likewise,  replaced  if  necessary. 

But,  in  Germany,  with  the  discharge  of  the  man,  the 
Imperial  Government  washes  its  hands  of  all  financial  respon- 
sibility. The  re-education,  the  vocational  training  of  the  ex- 
soldier,  is  a  burden  thrown  upon  the  people  at  large.  Certain 
of  the  states  supervise  the  work  and  a  few  assist  financially, 
but  in  the  main  the  various  communities  must  meet  the  obliga- 
tion. Likewise,  the  matter  of  placement,  of  securing  employ- 
ment, is  not  a  governmental  task.  Yet  despite  this  lack  of 
unity  in  system,  or  of  central  control,  the  work  is  well  done. 
Another  illustration  of  the  wisdom  of  preparedness.  Out  of  her 
industrial  situation,  Germany  learned  a  great  lesson.  So  came 
hospital  development  and  an  adequate  employment  system. 

ENGLAND'S  WAY. 

In  England,  the  disabled  soldier  and  his  family  are  cared 
for  by  the  government,  not  only  while  he  is  under  medical  treat- 
ment, but  also  during  the  period  of  occupational  training.  And 
through  a  comprehensive  national  system  of  employment 
bureaus  the  problem  of  placement  is  solved  as  far  as  prac- 
ticable. 

THE  FRENCH  METHOD. 

In  France,  after  physical  rehabilitation  has  been  accom- 
plished as  far  as  it  can  be,  the  vocational  re-education  passes 
into  the  hands  of  schools,  either  owned  by  individuals,  cor- 
porations or  public  bodies,  but  all  under  national  supervision 
and  aided  financially  by  the  state.  The  family  of  the  soldier,  in 
the  meantime,  continues  to  draw  his  governmental  allowance, 
or,  if  a  pension  has  been  granted,  to  live  upon  it,  any  loss  as 
between  the  pension  and  allowance  being  made  up  by  the  gov- 
ernment. Placement,  is  fairly  well  looked  after  by  a  department 
of  the  government  which  keeps  in  touch  with  employers  and 
laborers. 

HOW  IT  IS  DONE  IN  ITALY. 

In  Italy  the  system  resembles  that  of  France,  but  there 
are  not  enough  vocational  schools  or  sufficient  equipment  in 
many  of  them.  The  government  has  been  lax  in  this  regard, 


but  is  awakening  to  the  necessity  of  action.  Those  who  seek 
re-education  must  remain  under  army  control  for  a  minimum 
period  of  six  months.  In  Italy  re-education  is  an  especially 
serious  problem,  since  eighty  per  cent  of  the  soldiers  are  peas- 
ants with  no  background  of  experience. 

CANADA  AND  THE  WOUNDED. 

Up  in  Canada,  our  great  neighbor  on  the  north,  the  med- 
ical care  of  disabled  soldiers  and  sailors  is  in  charge  of  a  high- 
class  committee  named  by  the  government.  Vocational  educa- 
tion Is  left,  largely,  to  the  provinces  and  communities,  while 
the  work  of  placement  is  practically  entirely  left  to  local  effort. 
Great  consideration  is  shown  the  men  by  the  Dominion  Govern- 
ment. When  a  soldier  is  discharged  from  the  hospital,  the  com- 
mittee at  his  home  town  is  immediately  notified,  and  if  the 
trip  is  a  long  one,  committees  along  the  route,  at  selected  points, 
are  requested  to  show  him  every  attention. 

VOCATIONAL  RE-EDUCATION. 

In  Germany,  the  vocational  re-education  of  the  disabled 
soldier  begins,  where  practicable,  in  the  hospital  while  he  is 
still  under  medical  treatment  and  military  control.  This  is  due 
largely  to  the  fact  that  the  government  refuses  to  bear  any  part 
of  the  cost  of  occupational  training  after  the  man's  discharge, 
and  so  the  communities  seek  to  cut  down  this  expense  by  begin- 
ning instruction  as  soon  as  the  military  doctors  permit. 

In  England,  France  and  Italy  this  plan  is  not  followed 
generally.  There  is  a  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the  wisdom 
of  it  Yet  if  not  undertaken  too  soon,  if  held  within  bounds,  the 
policy  would  seem  to  be  commendable  as  tending  to  hasten  the 
recovery  of  the  patient  by  diverting  his  mind  from  his  misfor- 
tune, and  likewise  to  hasten  the  time  when  he  can  again 
become  a  useful  member  of  the  civil  community. 

The  policy  in  Europe  is  to  base  a  man's  reeducation  upon 
his  past  occupation,  as  far  as  practicable,  and  to  have  him 
return  to  his  former  community,  among  relatives,  friends  and 
acquaintances.  While  a  discharged  soldier,  free  of  military 
lule,  cannot  be  forced  to  undergo  re-education,  every  induce- 
ment in  reason  is  held  out  to  persuade  him  to  do  so.  He  is 
urged  not  to  be  content  to  eke  out  an  existence  upon  his  pen- 
sion, but  to  continue  to  play  the  part  of  a  man;  to  produce  as 
well  as  consume. 

OPPORTUNITY,  NOT  CHARITY. 

The  nations  no  longer  follow  the  policies  of  the  past. 
They  recognize  their  duty  to  the  injured  soldier,  and  the  sol- 


dier's  duty  to  them.  The  movement  is  all  away  from  the  old 
soldiers'  homes,  inactivity,  charity,  the  peddling  of  pencils  and 
shoestrings,  and  toward  private  homes,  activity,  self-respect,  the 
building  up  of  man  that  he  can  do  his  part  in  building  up  the 
nation.  National  pride  and  gratitude,  as  well  as  national  econ- 
omy, call  for  rehabilitation.  The  governments  must  stand  pre- 
pared to  do  their  parts.  And  the  American  ex-soldier,  despite 
more  or  less  disappointment  to  date  in  European  countries,  it 
is  believed,  can  be  counted  upon,  very  generally,  to  do  his  part — 
to  recognize  both  his  duty  and  his  opportunity. 

But  the  opportunity  should  be  in  evidence.  Time  should 
not  be  lost  between  the  ending  of  medical  treatment  and  the 
beginning  of  vocational  re-education.  Habits  that  might  come 
from  idleness,  pampering  by  the  family  and  over-attention  by 
the  local  public  should  not  be  given  a  chance.  The  disabled 
soldier  is  a  hero  now,  but  as  time  passes  the  glamour  will  go. 
History  and  human  nature  tell  us  this.  For  his  own  sake  as 
well  as  the  country's  the  returned  soldier  should  be  started 
right  without  loss  of  time. 


WHAT  IS  AMERICA  DOING? 

And  how  is  America  meeting  or  preparing  to  meet  the 
problems  of  medical  treatment,  vocational  re-education  and 
placement?  The  Federal  Government  must  lead  and  the  State 
Governments  follow.  We  may  rest  assured  that  in  the  matter 
of  hospital  care  and  medical  attention  nothing  will  be  left 
undone  by  our  Government,  that  no  nation  in  Europe  will  do 
more  for  its  disabled  soldiers.  Our  State  Governments,  as  such, 
will  take  no  direct  part  in  this  great  work.  The  men  will  still 
be  under  military  rule. 

But  with  the  discharge  of  the  soldier  as  physically  fit  to 
re-enter  civil  life,  comes  the  question  of  his  future.  The  oppor- 
tunity then  will  fce  presented  to  the  states  of  working  with  the 
Federal  Government  along  re-educational  and  placement  lines, 
or  of  taking  up  the  task  where  the  latter  lays  it  down.  What 
the  soldier  will  seek,  and  what  the  people  should  be  prepared 
to  give  him,  is  not  charity  but  opportunity.  In  Germany,  the 
government  says:  "There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  cripple  if  the 
will  exists  in  the  man  to  overcome  his  disability";  that  soldiers 
discharged  from  the  army  because  no  longer  fit  to  fight  must 
be  distributed  among  the  people  "as  though  nothing  had  hap- 
pened." This  policy  is  wise,  economically.  It  is  for  the  best 
interest  of  society  and  the  men  themselves.  But  it  should  be 
carried  out  in  a  humane  manner  and  not  with  German  ruth- 
lessness 


TWO  REHABILITATION  ACTS. 

Congress  has  passed  two  Important  acts  to  provide  for 
the  re-education  and  placement  of  disabled  men  of  the  military 
and  naval  service.  The  laws  are  closely  related,  although  one 
includes  civilians  and  was  under  consideration  before  we 
entered  the  war.  The  first  of  these  measures  to  be  passed  is 
known  as  the  Smith-Hughes  Act,  and  the  second  as  the  Smith- 
Sears  Act. 

The  latter,  which  I  will  discuss  more  in  detail  further 
along,  is  based  on  the  theory  that  inasmuch  as  the  number  of 
disabled  men  will  not  fall  upon  the  various  states  proportion- 
ately, according  to  the  number  of  men  enlisted  or  drafted  from 
each,  therefore  the  Federal  Government,  in  equity,  should 
assume,  as  far  as  practicable,  the  burden  of  rehabilitation,  and 
cover  the  cost  by  general  taxation. 

THE  SMITH-HUGHES  ACT. 

Realizing,  however,  that  this  great  work  could  best  be 
done  in  conjunction  with  the  state  governments,  and,  in  fact, 
that  the  latter  are  as  much  concerned  in  the  task  of  social 
re-establishment  as  is  the  Federal  Government,  Congress  also 
enacted,  or,  to  be  accurate,  amplified,  the  Smith-Hughes  law. 
As  far  back  as  1909.  the  theory  underlying  this  measure  was 
approved,  and  a  bill  introduced  in  Congress.  In  1913  legislation 
was  enacted  as  applied  to  agriculture.  But  it  was  not  until 
February,  1917,  that  the  present  law  became  effective,  and  not 
until  July  of  that  year,  after  we  had  entered  the  war,  that  the 
Vocational  Education  Board,  charged  with  the  administration  of 
the  act,  began  operations.  Originally  intended  to  meet  a  dis- 
quieting situation  in  the  nation,  then  at  peace,  it  now  fits  in 
most  encouragingly  in  working  out  the  problem  of  the  re-educa- 
tion and  placement  of  the  men  who  have  fought  their  country's 
battles. 

In  brief,  the  Smith-Hughes  Act  provides  a  scheme  of 
co-operation  between  the  Federal  Government  and  the  States 
for  the  promotion  of  vocational  education  in  fields  of  agricul- 
ture, trade,  home  economics  and  industry — along  lines  of  com- 
mon, wage-earning  employment 

The  Federal  Government  does  not  undertake  the  organiza- 
tion and  immediate  direction  of  vocational  training  in  the  states, 
but  will  closely  supervise  the  work  and  from  year  to  year  make 
financial  contributions  for  its  support,  giving  dollar  for  dollar 
as  each  state  gives,  within  the  limit  of  its  own  appropriation 
as  fixed  by  law. 

The  money  set  aside  by  Congress  for  this  purpose  is  based 
on  a  graduated  scale,  the  amount  increasing  year  by  year  up  to 


1926,  when  the  maximum  will  be  reached.  This  maximum  will 
then  become  the  annual  appropriation  by  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment thereafter,  to  continue  indefinitely.  The  total  grant  for 
the  fiscal  year  of  1917-18  was  $1,860,000  and  for  1925-26  will  be 
$7,367,000.  The  contribution  by  the  states  will  double  this 
amount,  or  a  grand  total  of  nearly  $15,000,000,  as  of  that  year, 
for  example.  The  appropriation  is  solely  for  the  salaries  of 
teachers,  supervisors  and  directors,  and  it  is  obvious,  therefore, 
that  other  large  sums  of  money  will  be  required  for  buildings, 
equipment  and  many  other  purposes.  Each  state  which  desires 
to  co-operate  with  the  Federal  Government,  must  name  a  Voca- 
tional Education  Board  of  three  members  to  carry  on  the  work. 

THE  SMITH-SEARS  ACT. 

The  Smith-Sears  Act  provides  for  the  "vocational  rehabili- 
tation and  return  to  civil  employment  of  disabled  persons  dis- 
charged i'rom  the  military  or  naval  forces  of  the  United  States." 
This  is  applicable  to  any  such  person  entitled,  after  discharge, 
to  compensation  under  the  act  creating  the  Bureau  of  War-Risk 
Insurance.  Any  such  person  is  entitled  not  only  to  free  instruc- 
tion but  to  "receive  monthly  compensation  equal  to  the  amount 
of  his  monthly  pay  for  the  last  month  of  his  active  service,"  or 
equal  to  the  compensation  due  him,  "which  ever  amount  is  the 
greater."  The  training  is  not  compulsory.  The  soldier,  sailor, 
marine  or  aviator  may  "elect"  to  take  it,  or  not,  as  he  pleases. 

In  the  matter  of  occupational  re-education,  it  cannot  "be 
carried  on  in  any  hospital  until  the  medical  authorities  certify 
that  the  condition  of  the  patient  is  such  as  to  justify  such 
teaching." 

Among  the  duties  of  the  Federal  Board  of  Vocational  Edu- 
cation— the  body  charged  with  the  duty  of  putting  this  law  into 
effect — is  the  studying  of  employment  problems,  and  "to  pro- 
vide for  the  placement  of  rehabilitated  persons  in  suitable  or 
gainful  occupations,"  to  utilize  the  facilities  of  the  Department 
of  Labor  and  otherwise  avail  itself  of  all  agencies  that  will 
assist  to  the  end  desired. 

The  act  carries  an  appropriation  of  $2,000,000.  Of  this 
sum,  $250,000  may  be  used  for  renting  and  remodeling  buildings, 
repairing  and  equipping  same;  $545,000  for  the  preparation  and 
salaries  of  instructors,  supervisors  and  other  experts;  $250,000 
for  the  traveling  expenses  of  disabled  persons,  subsistence  and 
so  on;  $545,000  for  tuition;  $45,000  for  placement  and  super- 
vision after  placement;  $55,000  for  studies,  investigations, 
reports,  etc.;  $110,000  for  miscellaneous  contingencies,  special 
appliances  and  so  on:  and  $200,000  for  administrative  expenses, 
salaries,  traveling,  rent,  equipment  of  offices,  postage  and  so 
forth  and  so  on. 


THE  STATES  MUST  HELP. 

While  the  main  idea  underlying  the  enactment  of  the 
Smith-Sears  Act,  as  already  pointed  out,  is  that  the  Federal 
Government,  as  a  matter  of  equity,  shall  provide  and  pay  for 
the  vocational  education  of  the  disabled  men,  it  is  clear  that 
the  appropriation  of  $2,000,000  will  not  furnish  sufficient  money 
for  the  purpose,  and  so  it  will  have  to  be  augmented  from  time 
to  time  by  Congress,  or  else  the  states  must  assist. 

Since  the  Smith-Hughes  Act  merely  calls  for  co-operation 
in  the  matter  of  providing  funds  for  the  payment  of  salaries,  a 
very  wide  gap  is  left,  and  presumably  the  task  of  supplying 
buildings,  equipment  and  so  on  will  fall  upon  the  states.  It 
may  be  that  along  this  line  the  states  will  find  their  best  oppor- 
tunity for  endeavor  and  cooperation.  In  any  event,  it  is 
obvious  that  the  states  must  aid,  liberally  and  intelligently,  in 
the  work  of  re-education  and  placement.  The  immediate  prob- 
lem is  to  ascertain  how  best  this  co-operation  can  be  brought 
about 

The  forty-eight  states  are  now  co-operating  under  the 
terms  of  the  Smith-Hughes  Act.  For  the  fiscal  year  1918-19, 
New  York  will  receive  the  largest  allotment,  the  amount  being 
$226,343.14,  while  California  will  receive  $58,021.64.  The  total 
of  the  government's  allotment  is  $2,307,460.44.  Multiply  this  by 
two,  and  the  grand  total  available  will  be  obtained,  on  the 
dollar-for-dollar  basis,  or  $4,614.920.88. 

In  Massachusetts  the  legislative  body  has  passed,  or  will 
do  so,  a  bill  establishing  a  "Division  of  the  Board  of  Education 
for  the  Training  and  Instruction  of  Disabled  Soldiers  and  Sailors 
and  to  Authorize  the  Federal  Government  to  use  State  Institu- 
tions and  Resources."  That  organization  may  be  effected,  $10,- 
000  will  be  made  immediately  effective,  and  the  General  Court 
is  authorized  to  set  aside  further  money  for  this  work  as  the 
needs  arise. 

CALIFORNIA  TO  DATE. 

California  is  co-operating  as  far  as  practicable,  but  inas- 
much as  the  Legislature  of  this  State  has  not  met  since  the 
spring  of  1917,  nothing,  of  course,  has  been  done  along  legisla- 
tive lines.  The  State  Board  of  Control  and  the  State  Controller, 
who  are  in  charge  of  the  emergency  fund,  have  met,  as  far  as 
legal  and  practicable,  the  war  requests  of  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment, as  in  the  food  control  campaign,  alien  enemy  work,  and 
so  forth  and  so  on.  But  nothing  material  has  been  done  look- 
ing to  the  re-education  of  soldiers  and  sailors  and  their  place- 
ment when  ready  to  enter  civil  life  again. 


The  problem  calls  for  the  most  earnest  consideration  by 
the  Governor  and  the  Legislature  of  1919.  California  must  stand 
ready,  must  be  prepared,  to  do  her  part  sanely  and  generously. 
Legislation  providing  for  the  fullest  co-operation  with  the  Fed- 
eral Government  must  be  enacted,  and  also  for  placing  the 
State  Government  in  a  position  to  go  beyond  this  joint  action 
in  the  care,  education  and  placement  of  men  disabled  in  the 
service  of  their  country. 


MUST  LOOK  BEYOND  1919. 

But  this  is  by  no  means  all.  Inasmuch  as  the  war  may 
be  over  before  the  legislative  session  of  1921,  the  Legislature 
of  1919  must  give  thought,  and  must  act,  looking  forward  to  the 
time  when  the  soldiers  and  sailors,  not  disabled,  are  discharged 
from  the  military  and  naval  service  of  the  Nation,  ready  to 
return  to  civil  life,  together  with  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
others  who  have  been  engaged  in  strictly  war  industries  and 
whose  occupations,  with  the  coming  of  peace,  will  be  gone. 
These  men  must  be  taken  back  into  the  ordinary  walks  of  life 
with  as  little  disturbance  of  business  and  labor  conditions  as 
possible.  Undoubtedly,  the  process  of  disarmament  will  be  slow, 
and  this  delay  will  aid  considerably  in  meeting  the  issue  of 
reabsorption.  But  at  best,  the  problem  will  prove  a  tremendous 
one. 

Old  positions  have  been  filled,  co-ordinated,  or  abolished. 
The  exigencies  caused  by  war  have  developed  new  ways  of 
doing  things,  as  the  successful  employment  of  women  in  many 
lines  of  work  heretofore  thought  to  belong  to  men  only;  or 
have  shown  that  some  things  need  not  be  done  at  all.  In  the 
great  majority  of  instances,  the  returned  fighters  must  make  a 
new  start,  must  begin  all  over  again  the  "earning  of  livings" 
for  themselves  and  their  families. 

There  will  be  two  classes  of  people  to  reckon  with  after 
the  war,  declared  Lloyd  George,  recently.  The  millions  who 
faced  death  daily  and  those  at  home  who  were  racked  by 
anxiety,  will  have  their  vision  broadened,  will  be  wiser  and 
better.  But  against  them  are  the  other  millions  who  have 
endured  all  sorts  of  wretchedness,  pain  and  terror,  and  "who 
have  made  up  their  minds  to  have  a  good  time  for  the  rest  of 
their  lives  when  the  war  is  over."  The  issue  is  not  a  local  one, 
although  each  State  of  the  Union  can  and  must  aid,  nor  is  it 
wholly  national;  it  is  international.  The  entire  civilized  world 
is  involved.  Not  only  must  the  world  be  made  safe  for  democ- 
racy, but  democracy  must  be  made  safe  for  the  world.  To  this 
end,  every  governmental  unit  must  strive. 


AMERICAN  PROBLEMS. 

We  of  America  have  been  spared  the  horrors  that  have 
come  upon  the  people  of  Belgium,  France,  Russia,  Servia, 
Rumania,  Poland  and  even  England  and  Germany;  but  while 
we  face  a  different  situation,  and  our  problems  may  not  be  as 
acute,  still  the  readjustment  that  must  take  place  in  the  United 
States  after  the  end  of  the  war  will  be  fraught  with  very  grave 
peril  to  the  Nation  and  will  call  for  the  highest  statesmanship. 

The  President,  his  advisers  and  others,  with  the  good  of 
the  country  at  heart,  have  given  and  are  giving  very  earnest 
thought  to  the  future.  Secretary  of  the  Interior  Lane  is  plan- 
ning to  ask  legislation  by  which  the  arid  lands  of  the  West,  the 
cut-over  lands  of  the  Northwest  and  the  swamp  lands  of  the 
Middle  West  and  South  can  be  reclaimed,  and  the  returned  sol- 
dier, sailor  and  war  industry  worker  be  given  a  preferred  status 
in  the  allotment  upon  easy  terms,  with  the  opportunity  to  assist 
in  the  construction  of  irrigation  projects  and  so  on,  thus  being 
paid  for  his  labor  while  developing  his  farm.  Much  of  this  land 
is  in  private  ownership,  and  non-productive  at  the  present  time, 
from  a  variety  of  causes.  Legislation  not  only  upon  the  part 
of  the  Federal  Government  will  be  required,  but  also  by  the 
states,  before  the  plan  in  view  can  be  put  into  full  execution. 
Co-operation  will  be  necessary  between  Washington,  the  states 
and  individual  owners  of  land.  And  in  addition,  there  are  the 
more  fertile  acres  held  in  great  tracts  by  wealthy  owners,  and 
uncultivated.  Will  this  be  tolerated  further  in  the  face  of  a 
crisis? 

WHERE  CALIFORNIA  COULD  HELP. 

Under  the  terms  of  the  Carey  Act,  government  owned 
desert  lands,  mostly  in  San  Bernardino  and  Riverside  Counties, 
so  far  as  California  is  concerned,  could  be  utilized,  although 
their  utilization  would  involve  the  expenditure  of  a  vast  amount 
of  money.  But  there  are  numerous  individual  owners  of  large 
desert  tracts,  who,  unable  to  develop  them  because  of  the  lack 
of  water  and  prohibitive  cost  of  irrigation  systems,  would  be 
glad  to  make  arrangements  with  the  State  whereby,  for  instance, 
they  would  relinquish  ownership  of  a  certain  proportion  of  their 
holdings  to  the  State  if  supplied  with  sufficient  water  to  care 
for  the  acreage  they  would  retain. 

We  have  in  California,  as  already  mentioned,  a  land  settle- 
ment project  under  State  law,  as  represented  in  the  colonization 
work  near  Durham,  in  Butte  County.  Incidentally,  Senator 
Hiram  W.  Johnson  is  preparing  a  bill  along  similar  lines  for 
introduction  in  Congress,  to  develop  Federal  colonization.  This 
State  law,  perhaps,  could  be  amplified  to  meet  the  desert-land 


situation,  or,  if  not,  special  legislation  could  be  enacted,  if 
deemed  wise.  And  we  have,  also,  our  school  lands,  the  property 
of  the  State.  The  best  of  these  holdings  are  now  in  private 
ownership,  but  perhaps  a  certain  proportion  of  what  remains 
could  be  brought  under  water  and  made  productive. 

The  development  of  idle  acres  would  prove  of  double 
service  in  helping  to  solve  the  problem  of  readjustment.  It 
would,  first,  materially  relieve  the  strain  in  the  matter  of  plac- 
ing ex-soldiers,  sailors  and  munition  workers,  and  to  that  extent 
minimize  the  disturbance  to  business  and  labor,  and,  second,  it 
also  would  increase  production,  lower  the  cost  of  living, 
strengthen  the  Nation's  available  resources,  increase  its  wealth, 
and  further  guarantee  the  people  against  want  and  deprivation, 
whether  due  to  war,  drouth  or  other  causes. 

THE  INDUSTRIAL  ASPECT. 

Along  industrial  lines  the  problem  of  replacement  is  more 
complicated.  What  will  be  the  attitude  of  employers?  What 
will  be  the  attitude  of  Union  Labor?  In  several  of  the  Euro- 
pean countries,  labor  is  looking  with  apprehension,  even  now, 
upon  the  vocationally  educated  ex-soldier,  who,  though  no 
longer  able  to  fight,  is  sufficiently  rehabilitated  physically  to 
earn  his  living  by  the  sweat  of  his  brow.  Employers  as  a  class 
are  reported  to  be  less  concerned,  but  perturbed,  nevertheless, 
over  such  phases  of  the  labor  problem  as  industrial  accidents, 
workmen's  compensation,  and  so  on,  fearing  higher  insurance 
rates,  lower  efficiency  and  added  expense. 

And  if  these  questions  are  now  arising,  with  only  the  dis- 
abled to  be  reckoned  with,  how  acute  will  the  situation  become 
when  the  war  is  over  and  millions  of  men — soldiers,  sailors  and 
war  industry  workers — clamor  for  employment,  for  the  means 
of  livelihood? 

And  what  of  those  who  will  want  anything  but  work,  the 
element  Lloyd  George  fears? 

HIGH  STATESMANSHIP  REQUIRED. 

To  repeat,  the  highest  qualities  of  patriotism,  statesman- 
ship and  humanity  must  be  called  into  play  to  meet  the  issue. 
The  civilized  world  is  concerned.  So,  too,  each  nation,  and 
each  part  of  each  nation.  In  the  United  States,  while  the  issue 
primarily  is  for  the  Federal  Government  to  meet,  yet  each  state 
must  do  its  part.  California  faces  a  great  task.  No  Legisla- 
ture which  has  preceded  the  body  that  will  assemble  on  the 
first  Monday  in  January,  1919— to  repeat  and  force  home  this 
point — ever  had  a  greater  responsibility  resting  upon  it — or  a 
greater  opportunity.  Justice  must  be  done  to  the  returned  fight- 


ers  and  those  who  labored  in  the  munition  plants  and  in  other 
work.  But  injustice  must  not  be  done  to  those  not  of  these 
classes.  The  problem  of  readjustment  will  prove  exceedingly 
delicate. 

WAR  AND  THE  TAX  BURDEN. 

It  should  be  obvious  to  all  that  the  cost  of  government 
in  the  United  States,  Federal  and  state,  has  been  heavily 
increased  by  the  war,  and  it  is  equally  obvious  this  trend  .will 
continue  while  the  readjustments  that  must  take  place  after 
the  coming  of  peace,  are  whipped  into  shape.  In  fact,  insofar 
as  the  states  are  concerned,  they  will  feel  the  burden  more 
heavily  and  directly  under  peace  than  under  war. 

That  there  has  been  a  tremendous  advance  in  the  cost  of 
government,  Federal  and  state,  during  the  past  two  decades, 
particularly  the  last,  is  beyond  dispute — an  advance  out  of  pro- 
portion to  the  increase  in  population  or  wealth,  and  probably 
income.  This  has  been  due,  in  large  measure,  to  the  assump- 
tion of  new  functions,  particularly  along  social  welfare  lines. 

But  it  also  has  been  due,  in  very  large  part,  to  the  lack 
of  business  efficiency  in  the  conduct  of  government.  Our 
various  forms  of  government  have  not  been  developed  along 
well-defined  lines.  They  have  "just  growed,"  like  Topsy.  No 
vision-inspired  man,  or  group  of  men,  at  the  National  Capital 
or  in  any  of  the  states,  in  the  beginning  saw  far  enough  ahead 
to  appreciate  the  necessity  of  a  comprehensive  scheme  that 
could  be  worked  out  with  time  and  added  to  as  the  necessity 
arose,  each  part  being  in  harmony  with  the  others  and  all 
responding  to  the  central  idea,  thus  avoiding  overlapping,  unnec- 
essary cost,  waste  of  time  and  effort,  and  bringing  about, 
instead,  clearness,  promptness  and  efficiency. 

HOW  IT  HAPPENED  HERE. 

And  so  it  has  been  in  the  State  of  California.  During 
the  sixty-eight  years  of  the  government's  existence  there  has 
been  little  effort  to  eliminate  or  co-ordinate  as  the  years  went 
by,  bringing  with  them  new  developments  and  new  responsibili- 
ties. We  have  met  each  new  situation  more  as  a  thing  apart 
than  as  related  to  the  governmental  structure  as  a  whole.  And 
as  a  result,  we  have  an  edifice  out  of  proportion,  lacking  unity 
of  design,  far  too  extensive,  duplicating  purposes,  and  unneces- 
sarily costly  in  construction  and  maintenance. 

It  is  very  unfortunate,  although  natural  enough,  that  the 
moment  discussion  is  started  as  to  the  cost  of  government,  the 
political  factor  is  brought  forward.  This  has  been  conspicu- 
ously so  in  California  in  recent  years. 


THE  COMMISSIONS. 

The  cry  against  "commissions  and  more  commissions" 
has  been  so  loud  and  persistent,  on  the  one  hand,  and  so  vocif- 
erously responded  to,  on  the  other,  that  the  truth  of  the  situa* 
tion  as  to  this  particular  development  not  only  has  become 
obscured,  but  attention  has  been  diverted  almost  entirely  from 
the  fact  that  the  State  Government  as  an  institution,  as  a 
whole,  is  urgently  in  need  of  very  extended  reorganization, 
affecting  not  only  newly  created  units,  but  many  old  ones. 

The  functions  assumed  during  recent  years  by  the  State 
Government  of  California  are  being  discharged  in  the  main  by 
new  commissions,  of  which  there  has  been  so  much  said  in 
criticism  as  well  as  praise.  These  commissions  were  put  on 
one  at  a  time,  much  after  the  manner  of  the  State  Government's 
development  from  its  beginning,  and  consequently  there  has 
been  duplication,  here  and  there,  and  other  evils.  But  the  legis- 
lation underlying  them,  even  if  not  always  put  into  effect  along 
the  wisest  lines,  has  been  largely  humanitarian  in  purpose; 
intended  for  the  advancement  and  safeguarding  of  the  social 
welfare.  And  the  result  is  that  California  today  is  better  pre- 
pared to  meet  the  situation  that  will  come  upon  the  country 
with  peace  than  probably  any  other  state  in  the  Union. 

But  it  is  also  true  that  the  more  efficiently  this  work  is 
conducted  the  better  will  be  the  result.  And  there  is  no  doubt 
that  room  exists,  insofar  as  the  new  commissions  are  con- 
cerned, for  co-ordination  and  elimination.  The  tendency  to 
create  new  boards  and  commissions  for  the  handling  of  new 
functions  or  the  enlargement  of  old  ones,  as  against  the  assign- 
ment of  these  duties  to  related  existing  agencies  of  government, 
has  been  very  pronounced.  Thus  has  come  waste  of  time, 
energy  and  money.  There  has  been  a  measure  of  truth  in  the 
attacks  upon  the  commissions,  and  a  measure  of  truth  in  their 
defense.  Each  side  has  been  partly  right,  but  not  willing  to 
admit  it  as  to  the  other.  So  much  because  of  the  political  con- 
siderations involved. 

BUSINESS  METHODS  THE  NEED. 

What  is  required  is  an  administration  and  a  Legislature 
that  will  approach  the  matter — not  only  as  to  the  new  commis- 
sions but  the  entire  organization  of  the  State  Government — in 
a  broad,  businesslike  manner,  free  of  partisanship,  and  with  a 
desire  to  bring  about  real  economies  insofar  as  it  can  be  done 
without  loss  of  real  efficiency,  always  bearing  in  mind  the  safe- 
guarding and  advancement  of  humanitarian  legislation.  And 
this  will  involve,  to  repeat  and  emphasize,  not  only  much  done 
in  the  last  eight  years,  but  much  done  in  the  preceding  sixty. 


A  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

What  the  State  Government  is  in  need  of  is  a  new  conl 
stitution — a   constitution   brief   and   to   the   point,   covering    tin 
fundamentals,  and  leaving  other  things  to  statutory  enactment! 
But  this,  if  ever  brought  to  pass,  will  require  years.     There  \\il[ 
be  need  of  much  preliminary  work  along  educational  lines, 
say  nothing  of  the  time  required  to  comply  with  the  law  reiat 
ing  to  the  submission  of  such  a  scheme  to  the  people. 

WHAT  CAN  BE  DONE  NOW. 

In  the  meantime,  however,   there   is  nothing  to  preven| 
action  by  the  Legislature  as  to  co-ordination  and  eliminatioi 
insofar  as  statutory  enactments  are  concerned.     There  shoul< 
be  first,  however,  an  investigation  by  trained  men  and  a  repoi 
made  by  them  for  the  guidance  of  the  lawmakers.     And  mat 
much  as  this  situation  has  been  made  a  political  issue,  such 
report  should  have  been  laid  before  the  public  in  the  priniar 
campaign,   that   the   various   candidates   might   have   been    pu| 
definitely  on  record.    There  has  been  too  great  an  indulgence 
generalities. 

Our  first  duty,  let  it  be  emphasized,  is  to  strain  everj 
effort  to  win  the  war,  and  as  speedily  as  possible;  our  secom 
to  make  provision  for  the  care  of  the  returned  fighters  and  wa| 
industry  workers;  and  our  third,  to  reduce  the  excessive  cos 
of  government,  state,  county  and  city — to  curtail  to  the  limi| 
consistent  with  efficiency. 

THE  SITUATION  IS  ACUTE. 

And    if    the    necessity    existed    before    America    becamj 
involved   in   the  war,   how   tremendously   more   necessary   it 
now : 

To  the  unnecessarily  heavy  tax  burdens  we  have  brougl 
upon  ourselves,  must  be  added  those  that  have  come  with  tt 
war  and  which  peace  will  intensify;  in  addition  to  the  pre-wi 
encroachments  by  the  Federal  Government  upon  several  of  tl 
main  sources  of  state  revenue,  and  the  only  too  obvious  fa< 
that  these  encroachments  are  increasing  and  will  continue 
increase  during  years  to  come.  On  the  one  hand,  to  emphasi: 
the  gravity  of  the  case,  the  cost  has  been  running  up  and  wi 
continue  to  do  so  even  more  rapidly  from  now  on,  while,  on  tl 
other,  valuable  sources  of  revenue  are  endangered.  There  is 
limit  even  to  taxation.  A  source  of  governmental  revenue  ci 
stand  so  much  and  no  more.  It  is  not  necessary  to  reach  tl 
point  of  confiscation. 

So  we  are  in  trouble,  serious  trouble,  coming  and  goinj 
The  situation  was  bad  enough  before  1917;  it  is  now  acut 
Patriotism  demands  that  we  meet  it  promptly  and  intelligentl 


Cayford  Broac, 

Maker* 
Syracuse,  N.  Y. 
PAT.JM.2t,  190ft 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


